Geography 2 Terms 2 Flashcards
1
Q
propagule
A
the stage in the life cycle, part of the organism, or group of organisms that is required to establish a new reproducing population.
2
Q
colonizations
A
dispersal and establishment occur at sites that are beyond the current geographic range of the species
3
Q
invasions
A
geographic range extensions that are caused by the introduction of exotic species by humans.
4
Q
Intra-range/ecological dispersal
A
dispersal that results in the movement of a propagule from its place of origin to a new site within the current geographic range of the species.
5
Q
Extra-range/biogeographical dispersal
A
This type of event results in the movement of the propagule away from its place of origin to a new site that lies outside the current geographic
range of the species.
6
Q
Passive dispersal
A
dispersal that requires an outside force to move the propagule. The force can be a physical one, such as wind and water, or it can be in the form of biological agents, such as birds and mammals.
7
Q
Active dispersal
A
dispersal that relies on the propagule itself to provide motion.
8
Q
Anemochores
A
plants and animals dispersed by the wind
9
Q
Hydrochores
A
plants and animals dispersed by water
10
Q
Anemohydrochores
A
organisms dispersed by wind or water
11
Q
Zoochores
A
organisms dispersed by animals
12
Q
Anthropochores
A
zoochores that are dispersed by humans
13
Q
Seasonal Migrations
A
the annual movements of organisms from one regularly
occupied geographic region to another for purposes of avoiding harsh conditions, feeding, and mating.
14
Q
Irruptions
A
Episodic explosions in the population size and geographic ranges of insects or animals.
15
Q
Exponential population growth
A
population growth of a species with infinite space and resources
16
Q
Logistic population growth
A
The population growth of a colonizing species in a setting with finite resources has the S-shaped form
17
Q
supertramps
A
organisms seem particularly well suited for rapid dispersal and successful colonization.
18
Q
jump dispersal
A
New populations can be established thousands of kilometers away from the range limits of the species.
19
Q
(Biogeographical) harmonization
A
Similar species of flora and fauna are found on both sides of the corridor
20
Q
filters
A
Avenues of dispersal and colonization which are not equally favorable for all species
21
Q
Great American Exchange
A
The movement of terrestrial fauna that occurred following the establishment of the isthmus
22
Q
stepping stones
A
Chains of closely distributed islands form a special type of dispersal route
23
Q
sweepstakes routes
A
Some routes of dispersal and migration only rarely allow successful dispersal and colonization. Crossing such routes occurs by chance and has a very low probability.
24
Q
evolution
A
genetically controlled changes in physiology, anatomy, and behavior that occur to a species over time
25
microevolution
Evolutionary change within an individual species or population
26
macroevolution
evolutionary change within larger taxonomic units such as families
27
Speciation
development of two or more genetically differentiable species from a single common ancestor species.
28
clade
The different species that arise from the same ancestor
29
genes
The basic physiology, anatomy, and behavior of species are controlled by chemical structures called _____, which are found in living cells and are passed from parents to offspring.
30
DNA
The genes of plants and animals consist of molecules of ______. The DNA molecules are made up of various combinations of sugars and phosphates that are joined together by nitrogenous compounds consisting of adenine, thymine, cytosine, and guanine bound by hydrogen.
31
chromosomes
Within the cells of an organism the genes are arranged along paired, threadlike structures called _________.
32
locus
The point at which a gene is located on a chromosome
33
diploid
Organisms and cells that have complete sets of chromosome pairs
34
haploid
Certain reproductive cells, such as sperm from animals, contain only one-half of each chromosome pair
35
polymorphism
genetically controlled variation in appearance within a population
36
alleles
The different gene forms that exist for a given locus
37
heterozygous
locus has different alleles associated with it
38
genome
The complete range of genes present in a species
39
phenotypic variations
Differences in the physiology, anatomy, or behavior of different species or individuals of the same species
40
genotypic variations
variations are often the result of genetic differences
41
cline
A geographic gradient in a genetically controlled trait,
| such as the height of the yarrow plants
42
genetic drift
The genetic composition of a population can change over time as new genes arise via mutation and other genes are lost through chance processes. Such random changes are referred to as _______ ______.
43
hybridization
when two different species mate
44
natural selection
Traits that provide an advantage in reproduction are selected for, whereas disadvantageous traits are selected against.
45
allopatric speciation
The formation of new species by geographic isolation
46
sympatric speciation
The development of new species within the same geographic area
47
parapatric speciation
This form of speciation, which is caused by the evolutionary divergence of populations that occupy different habitat in the same geographic area, is called disruptive selection, or this.
48
phyletic gradualism
New traits arise by mutations, and traits that infer greater reproductive success are selected for and eventually become dominant over many generations.
49
punctuated equilibria
The idea that species persist for long periods of stasis when little evolutionary change occurs. These relatively stable species are then replaced by new species when the stability of the environment is punctuated by environmental changes.
50
Cope's Rule
One interesting general pattern that occurs in the evolutionary history of many species is a trend toward larger size as the lineage evolves. This general pattern
of increasing size is referred to as this.
51
founder principle
The idea that populations founded by a very small number of individuals generally contain a small subset of the total genetic variability of the main population and are prone to allopatric speciation.
52
bottleneck
The decreased genetic diversity that results from a decreased population size and asso ciated decrease in genetic diversity
53
peripatric speciation
Occurs when peripheral populations become geographically isolated from the main population and undergo genetic divergence and speciation.
54
vicariance events
In some cases, large populations become geographically separated by geologic events such as the splitting of continents. Such changes, which divide the ranges of species into geographically isolated distributions
55
adaptive radiation
The development of many species from a single species often results from this process. During this process, new species evolve from a common ancestor to fill all of the available niches in the colonized region.
56
convergent evolution
The development of similar morphological or physiological traits in unrelated species living in geographically separated regions
57
parallel evolution
This term is used to describe these instances where geographically isolated populations derived from the same ancestor evolve into morphologically and physiologically similar descendant species.
58
coevolution
A final pattern of evolutionary development that is tightly tied by geography occurs when two unrelated species evolve traits that are tied to their interactions
59
extinction
loss of all individuals in the population of a given species,
genus, family, or order
60
local extinction
occurs when a species or higher taxonomic order disappears in one or more geographic areas but persists in other regions.
61
global extinction
refers to the loss of a species, or higher taxonomic order over its entire range.
62
trophic cascades
the loss of an important prey species can cause further extinctions because of the loss of food for higher predators
63
phyletic extinction
In many cases, species disappear from the fossil record because they evolved into new species
64
Leigh Van Valen
Developed the Red Queen Hypothesis in 1973
65
Red Queen Hypothesis
In the book the Red Queen says, "it takes all the running you can do to stay in the same place." The point is that all of a species' competitors are continually evolving and becoming more competitive. If a species cannot evolve quickly enough to keep pace with the evolution of competing species, it will go extinct because of interspecific competition.
66
evolutionary trap
However, evolutionary change and adaptation do not
always protect a species against extinction. In some cases, species may become highly adapted for life in a very isolated geographic area, such as an island or a
remote lake. If the environment changes, such species may have lost the ability to adapt to new conditions. Such overspecialization in an isolated site is referred to as this.
67
blind alleys
In addition, the loss of genetic diversity during evolution
| can fix species into modes of evolutionary development which become lethal. Such evolutionary paths are called this.
68
endemic
When a species, genera, or family is restricted to one or a few geographic regions
69
cosmopolitan
Widely distributed families, genera, or species
70
coefficients of similarity
Biogeographers often use mathematical indices to provide quantitative estimates of the floral or faunal similarities between regions. These indices are referred to as this
71
harmony
For both equations, a value of 1 indicates that the flora or fauna of both regions are identical. Biogeographers would say that the flora or fauna of regions are in _________.
72
biogeographical provincialism
The tendency for different regions to possess unique species, genera, or families
73
biogeographic realms
Supercontinental areas that contain similar flora and fauna.
74
biogeographic regions
Continental and supercontinental areas that contain similar flora and fauna.
75
biogeographic provinces
Subcontinental areas that contain similar flora and fauna.
76
biogeographic lines
A geographic boundary dividing two biogeographic regions.
77
Wallace's Lines
The boundary between the Austalasian and Oriental biogeographic regions. First described by Alfred Russell Wallace.
78
biogeographic transition zones
distinct biogeographic lines between regions which are closely adjacent or share continental areas
79
monophyletic
evolved from a common ancestor
80
choropleth map
These types of maps, in which the area occupied by an entity (such as a plant or animal species) is delineated by continuous shading or circumscribed by an unbroken line
81
Pielou's Combined Regions
combined floral + faunal biogeographic regions
82
Rapopert's Rule
The general pattern of decreasing range sizes of plant and animal taxa that live near the equator compared to those that live in higher latitudes.
83
Disjunct
Having a biogeographic distribution in which
| two or more populations of the same taxon are separated by large geographic areas in which the taxon is absent.
84
Dispersal disjunction
Taxa which have a disjunct distribution due to jump dispersal events.
85
Climatic disjunctions
A disjunct distribution caused by climatic change.
86
Geologic disjunctions
A disjunct distribution caused by geologic events such as continental drift.
87
Evolutionary disjunction
A disjunction that occurs when species evolve at two different peripheries of the geographic range of a population. Extinction of the ancestral population causes the related species to be disjunct from each other.
88
species richness
This simple measure of biodiversity, based solely on the number of different species in a given area
89
species-area relationship
The positive relationship between the size of the area surveyed and the number of species encountered
90
historical theories of biodiversity
Theories that assume that modern biodiversity is not in equilibrium with modern environmental conditions because it reflects past events of the evolution and extinction.
91
equilibrium theories of biodiversity
Theories which assume that modern biodiversity is in equilibrium with modern environmental conditions.
92
stability-time hypothesis
The hypothesis that long periods of environmental stability lead to high species richness.
93
peninsula effect
Peninsulas have lower species diversity than adjacent mainland areas. The species richness on peninsulas also generally declines toward the tip.
94
intermediate disturbance hypothesis
According to this hypothesis, if an ecosystem remains free of disruption by disturbance, the stable homogeneous environmental conditions will favor some species but will lead to the extinction of species for which the stable habitat is not favorable or which are prone to competitive exclusion by species that are favored by the undisturbed environment. The loss of species produces decreased biodiversity. Disturbances cause physical and biological changes and spatial heterogeneity that can favor species that would not survive in a stable undisturbed system. On the other hand, if disturbance
occurs too frequently and is too severe, it will lead to the extinction of disturbance-sensitive species that have long generation times or occur in low numbers and are prone to chance extinction. Thus, maximum levels of biodiversity can be expected from intermediate levels of disturbance that occur frequently enough and cause enough disruption and environmental heterogeneity
for the survival of species which could not persist in an undisturbed system, but are not so frequent or severe as to cause the extinction of long-lived and disturbance-sensitive species.
95
nested pattern of insular communities
The general tendency for the biota on islands to contain a subset of the flora and fauna found on nearby larger islands or continents.
96
equilibrium theory of island biogeography
The theory advanced by R.H. MacArthur and E.O. Wilson that the biodiversity on islands is governed by rates of colonization and extinction, which are in turn controlled by island isolation and island size
97
species turnover
The changing species composition
98
rescue effect
This effect occurs when small populations of a species are rescued from the brink of extinction by the arrival of new immigrants of the same species. Isolated
islands are less likely to receive frequent immigrants, so small populations on these islands are more likely to go extinct.
99
target area effect
The positive relationship between island size and immigration rates
100
species relaxation
The decline in species richness that occurs when a region is cut off from a larger landmass or area of similar habitat
101
continental taxa
species that have their main populations and centers of origin on continents
102
insular taxa
species that have evolutionary origins on the island
103
Homo sapiens sapiens
members of the placental mammal order of the Primates
104
Great Apes
includes Chimps, Gorillas and Orangutans.
105
Hominoidea
superfamily that includes humans and "Great Apes"
106
hominids
include modern humans (Homo sapiens sapiens) and closely related species – which are all extinct today. Some of these extinct species were ancestors of modern humans while others are lineages that have left no modern descendents.
107
bipedal
which means they walked on two legs like modern humans.
108
Australopithecus
The earliest widely accepted hominids are members of this genus. They appear in Africa about 4 million years ago – representing divergence from the ancestors of the modern chimps.
109
Oldowan Tradition
The oldest known tool making tradition, dating from 2.5 to about 1.5 million years ago. It is associated with Homo habilis in Africa.
110
Acheulean Tradition
The Lower Paleolithic stone tools of Homo erectus
111
Out of Africa Model
A model of human evolution that suggests most hominid species, including modern humans, first evolved in Africa and then dispersed from there to other parts of the world.
112
Out of Asia Model
A model of human evolution that suggests that modern humans evolved in Asia and dispersed from there.
113
Multiregional Model
The scenario in which Homo sapiens evolved from Homo erectus separately at two or more geographic locations is
called this.
114
Mousterian Tradition
The Neanderthal tools from this period are classified as Middle Paleolithic
115
Human Revolution
A rapid expansion 50,000 years ago of Homo sapiens sapiens within and out of Africa. These modern hominids created art, practiced ritual burials, and displayed other indications of sophisticated culture.
116
Industrial Revolution
The rapid development of new technologies and the shift of the socioeconomic system away from an agrarian base towards a techno-industrial base that has occurred since about 1800.
117
Domestication
the process by which plant and animal species come to depend on humans for survival while in turn providing humans with practical or other benefits.
118
Agriculture
The cultivation of domesticated plants and animals for human use
119
artificial selection
Conscious and unconscious genetic selection practiced by humans on species of plants and animals.
120
hunters and gatherers
relied on naturally occurring vegetation, fruits,
| nuts, carrion, and game for subsistence
121
pastoral nomadicism
The human herders migrated and moved along with their herds during seasonal changes in grazing areas.
122
Fertile Crescent
This region of early plant domestication
123
environmental determinism
The premise that changes in human culture are driven mainly by changes in environment
124
sixth extinction
the episode of extinctions over the past 10,000 years or so that have been caused by humans
125
prehistoric extinctions
extinctions caused by the initial geographic expansion of human beings from Africa and Eurasia.
126
historic extinctions
caused by the combination of European colonization and socioeconomic expansion, and the rapid global increase in human population.
127
conservation biology
a synthetic discipline that applies principles from biology and other sciences to the maintenance of biodiversity
128
conservation biogeography
most biogeographers concentrate specifically on how spatial distributions or temporal patterns and historical
events affect the present abundance and potential conservation of biodiversity.
129
landscape ecology
concerned principally with spatial patterns of landscapes,
including the distribution of species and habitat on local to regional scales, and with how these patterns are developed and maintained by nature and human actions.
130
land ethic
Leopold argued that human communities were part of a greater community that included the natural world. We should extend the same ethical treatment to nature that we extend within human communities.
131
endangered species
species or subspecies that is at risk of extinction throughout all or a portion of its range.
132
threatened species
species that is likely to be endangered in the foreseeable future.
133
sixth extinction
the episode of extinctions over the past 10,000 years or so that have been caused by humans.
